David Bowie, Labyrinth, 1985. For (alas) his final film as a director, Muppeteer-in-Chief Jim Henson wanted a rock star as Jareth, ruler of the mystical world that, as Chicgo critic Roger Ebert put it, was just out of sight of ordinary eyes… Jackson topped the list, a nose ahead of Mick Jagger and Prince. Henson fancied Sting (after Dune?!) - but the Henson kids said Bowie, Bowie, Bowie, Bowie, Bowie! (Five kids). And the thin, white Major Tom fell for the entire dreamworld concept.

Peter Sellars, King Lear, 1987. The contract for bilious auteur Jean-Luc Godard to tackle Shakespeare was signed (an hour after it had been mooted) on large napkin at the Majestic Hotel bar during the 1985 Cannes festival. The film was just as ridiculous. Godard asked everyone to join what he later detested - from Orson Welles to Richard M Nixon. An invite was also mailed to Prince, who, like Ingmar Bergman, never replied. William Shakespeare Jr finally became Sellars, a stage and opera director minus any acting talent to match that of his near namesake.